Many small business owners know one thing: they have an amazing product.
And yet they're struggling with sales.
So they throw more money at ads, obsess over traffic, and double down on getting more people to their website. 💸
And in theory, I get it. It makes sense.
But what they're often missing is that what’s actually holding them back isn't traffic at all.
It's their conversion rate.
There is literally no point scaling with ads until you've got a website with a proven conversion rate that's working as hard as it possibly can with the traffic you've already got.
I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but I've seen it happen so many times.
You're essentially flushing money down the toilet if you're sending paid traffic to a website that doesn't turn visitors into buyers.
So... what actually is conversion rate?
Once you realise conversion rate is something that can be improved, it's very easy to start obsessing over that number instead... and, more importantly, wondering why it won't budge! 🧐
The problem is, conversion rate is a really broad metric.
Everyone asks, "How do we improve conversion rate?" but in reality, almost every change you make to your website has some influence on it. That makes it difficult to know where to focus your efforts.
That's why I like to break it down into much more manageable pieces.
The truth is, there are actually three different conversion metrics hiding inside that one overall conversion rate figure.
Each one tells you something completely different about where customers are dropping off during the buying journey. Once you know which stage is underperforming, you know exactly where to start fixing things.
To give you a rough frame of reference, here are some general industry benchmarks for each stage:
Just don’t get too hung up on these numbers – they’re very much an average and can vary wildly depending on your niche, price point, and traffic quality.
Think of them more as a rough guide so you can quickly see whether something is broadly in the right range or clearly underperforming.
What really matters is your own baseline, and whether the changes you make are improving each stage over time.
Your holy grail Shopify report
If you're using Shopify, this report is honestly one of the most useful places you can start.
Go to:
Analytics → Reports → Conversion Rate Breakdown
You'll see a funnel showing:
Sessions → Added to Cart → Reached Checkout → Completed Checkout
Before you start analysing anything, make sure you're looking at at least the last 30 days so you're working from a reliable average rather than a few good (or bad) days.
1. Add to Cart Rate
What it tells you
If people are landing on your product pages but not adding products to their basket, this isn't a traffic problem.
It's your first conversion problem.
The good news? Product pages usually have the biggest opportunity for improvement, so this is often the best place to start.
What to fix
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Move Add to Bag above the fold so it’s visible without scrolling
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Make Add to Bag sticky on mobile so it’s always available
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Use one primary CTA only (remove competing buttons like Shop Pay etc.)
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Make Add to Bag visually dominant with a clear accent colour
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Make product title instantly clear (no internal or confusing naming)
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Start product copy with the main benefit or outcome, not specs
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Use short bullet points for key benefits, not dense paragraphs
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Add clear size guide, materials, dimensions, and FAQs directly on page
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Remove uncertainty by answering key objections on-page (delivery, fit, returns)
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Show reviews and star rating near the top of the page
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Place trust signal icons (delivery, returns, guarantees) directly under Add to Bag
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Use a mix of high quality lifestyle + product + close-up images (not just one style)
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Ensure images are below 300kb and load fast
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Break dense content into tabs or accordions instead of long walls of text
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Make shipping and returns information upfront and easy to find
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Include a short brand intro section further down the page (who you are + why you exist)
2. Reached Checkout Rate
What it tells you
If customers have added something to their basket but never actually begin checkout, you're usually seeing either a trust issue, friction in the basket, or simply distraction.
Something at this point is stopping them from taking the next step.
What to fix
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Show clear basket summary (product image, name, price, quantity)
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Display free shipping threshold or progress bar if used
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Show delivery estimates where possible
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Reduce distractions in basket (keep focus on progressing to checkout)
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Offer multiple payment options (Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay)
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Make checkout button highly visible and easy to access
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Set up abandoned cart emails (send within 1 hour + follow-ups at 24h intervals)
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Include direct link back to basket in all recovery emails
A lot of the time, this stage isn’t even about something being “wrong” with your site.
People get distracted. Their baby starts crying, they get a text message, or they go to make a cup of tea and forget to come back.
So while improving clarity and trust definitely helps, you shouldn’t assume every drop-off is a persuasion problem.
This is where abandoned cart flows matter more than most people realise.
A strong abandoned cart flow is often one of the highest ROI automations in ecommerce.
You’re not always “convincing” someone to buy – you’re simply reminding them they already decided they wanted to.
A well-timed email within the first hour, followed by a couple of gentle reminders over the next 24–48 hours, is often enough to recover a meaningful percentage of lost sales without changing anything on the site itself.
3. Completed Checkout Rate
What it tells you
This is the final stage.
The customer made it all the way through checkout but didn't complete their purchase.
Usually, this points to a confidence problem.
They clearly wanted the product. Something just made them hesitate at the last second.
The good news is Shopify's checkout is fairly locked down and already heavily optimised, so there aren't loads of changes you need to make here.
But there are still a few important things to check.
What to fix
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It’s the default, but double-check you’re using Shopify’s one-page checkout to reduce steps and friction
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Remove unnecessary form fields – only ask for what you actually need
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Enable address lookup, autofill, and express checkout options to reduce typing
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Make checkout visually consistent with your brand (logo, colours, styling) to reinforce trust
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Offer multiple payment options (Shop Pay, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay)
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Add flexible payment options like Klarna or Clearpay for higher-ticket products
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Ensure delivery cost and timings are fully clear before the final payment step
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Set up abandoned checkout emails (first sent within 30 minutes) with a direct link back to checkout
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Follow up with additional reminder emails if they still don’t complete purchase
Final thoughts
Before you spend another penny on ads, spend some time understanding where your website is actually losing customers.
More traffic isn't always the answer.
If your product pages aren't convincing people to add to basket, if your basket isn't encouraging people to checkout, or if your checkout is creating unnecessary friction, more visitors simply means more people leaving without buying.
Focus on improving the conversion rate of the traffic you already have first.
Once your website is converting as well as it possibly can, that's the time to start scaling your marketing with confidence.
This is exactly the kind of work I focus on with clients, both 1:1 and inside the free Shopify community I co-run with Lee from LR Digital.
Inside, we break down exactly what is and isn’t working with member stores, so you can see where your conversions are leaking and what to focus on fixing first.
I look forward to seeing you there!
